For the first time in the program's history, the Blake High field hockey team wears the moniker of regional champion.
The second-seeded Bengals accomplished that goal Thursday afternoon with a 3-1 win against top-seeded and host Quince Orchard to give them the 3A West Region crown.
Sara Hagan posted two goals and Lane Flynn put in the other one for Blake (8-7), which went into halftime tied 1-1 with the Cougars (13-4), who reached the 4A state final a year ago. Blake earned a 3A state semifinal contest with 3A South Region champion Northern of Calvert County, Monday at Arundel High in Gambrills.
"Quince Orchard is a strong team with a lot of history of playing at states, so this is a huge win for our program," said first-year Blake coach Patrick Howley. "The girls got aggressive [in the second half and] we got some corners."
Neither Bethesda-Chevy Chase nor Poolesville could produce similar results as No. 2 seeds in the 4A West and 2A West Region finals, respectively. The Barons (12-3) were blanked 2-0 by undefeated and top-seeded Westminster Thursday night while Falcons (11-3) lost 1-0 in double overtime to top-seeded Century.